DOCSLIB.ORG

Conservation of Peary Caribou Based on a Recalculation of the 1961 Aerial Survey on the Queen Elizabeth Islands, Arctic Canada

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Conservation of Peary Caribou Based on a Recalculation of the 1961 Aerial Survey on the Queen Elizabeth Islands, Arctic Canada The Tenth North American Caribou Workshop, Girdwood, Alaska, USA, 4-6 May, 2004. Conservation of Peary caribou based on a recalculation of the 1961 aerial survey on the Queen Elizabeth Islands, Arctic Canada Frank L. Miller, Samuel J. Barry & Wendy A. Calvert Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment Canada, Prairie & Northern Region, Room 200, 4999 — 98th Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T6B 2X3, Canada (corresponding author: [email protected]). Abstract: The estimate of 25 845 Peary caribou (Rangifer tarandus pearyi) on the Queen Elizabeth Islands (QEI) in the Canadian High Arctic in summer 1961 is the only nearly range-wide 'benchmark' for the past number of caribou. No variances or confidence intervals were calculated for this estimate and no estimates were calculated for Peary caribou on the three major islands of Ellesmere, Devon, and Axel Heiberg. We reexamined the 1961 raw data by grouping the QEI into five island-complexes ('eco-units') and calculating, for each unit, the estimated number of caribou and the standard error, and the 95% confidence interval of the estimate, using a 'bootstrap' technique with 100 000 replications. Our goal was to provide an ecological basis for evaluating subsequent changes in numbers rather than relying on single-island evaluations. Our bootstrap reanalysis produced an estimate of 28 288 ± 2205 SE with a 95% CI of 20 436—37 031 Peary caribou on the QEI in summer 1961. Substantial differences in density were apparent among the five eco-units, with about a 50-fold difference from 0.01 caribou • km-2 in the Eastern eco-unit to 0.5 caribou • km-2 in the Northwestern eco-unit. The 1961 findings, with our subsequent reexamination, are crucial to any evaluation of trends for the number of Peary caribou on the QEI and the relative importance of individual eco-units for these animals. These findings also allow a more accurate evaluation of the magnitude of the subsequent decline of Peary caribou on the QEI during the last four decades and may help predict future potential levels for caribou in each of the five eco-units. Key words: Canadian High Arctic Islands, conservation, distribution, management, numbers, Rangifer tarandus pearyi. Rangifer, Special Issue No. 16: 65-75 Introduction Tener (1963) estimated there were 25 845 Peary ite multi-island caribou surveys were conducted in caribou (Rangifer tarandus pearyi) on the Queen WQEI with adequate temporal separation (Miller et Elizabeth Islands (QEI) in summer 1961. This initial, al., 1977a; Miller, 1987a, 1987b, 1988, 1989; Gunn & range-wide, systematic aerial survey of Peary caribou Dragon, 2002). There have been no range-wide sys¬ has never been repeated. Tener found that the dis¬ tematic aerial surveys for Peary caribou on the EQEI tribution of caribou among the QEI was markedly or on any major portion of that region since 1961. uneven: based on island sizes he used, 94% (24 363) Only parts of Ellesmere Island were subsequently were on western QEI (WQEI), which makes up 24% aerially surveyed (Riewe, 1973; Case & Ellsworth, of the total island landmass, and the remaining 6% 1991; Gauthier, 1996; Manseau et al., 2004). (1482) were on eastern QEI (EQEI), with 76% of the The 1961 survey of the three largest islands— landmass (Fig. 1). Ellesmere, Devon and Axel Heiberg—was hindered Before 1961, the only information on distribution by persistent bad weather in some sections (Tener, and numbers of Peary caribou across the QEI came 1963). Survey coverage was low and fragmented. As from a few interested geologists in the mid- and late a result, Tener (1963) did not quantitatively estimate 1950s. After Tener's 1961 survey, only three compos- the total number of caribou on those islands and his Rangifer, Special Issue No. 16, 2005 65 "intuitive guesses" for them were exceedingly small. etation differences (Edlund & Alt, 1989; Bliss, The mean overall density of 0.003 caribou • km-2 was 1990; Edlund, 1990). The collective landmass of but a tiny fraction of what the usable range on those the relatively large islands within the five eco-units three islands could support (62% of the total usable is 416 740 km2. The portion of the 1961 survey range on the QEI occurs on these three islands). area that we judge to be usable by Peary caribou is Subsequent development of aerial survey tech¬ 301 978 km2 or about 72% of the entire QEI. The niques and statistical analyses allow us to reevaluate 2092 small islands (defined as each having an area the 1961 data to determine standard errors and con¬ <137 km2) with a total landmass of 2321 km2 are not fidence intervals. We emphasize that the application included in any calculations for the five eco-units. of these statistical methods in no way betters Tener's A few caribou do live on these small islands: usu¬ original 1961 data set. The benefits of our approach ally only seasonally, but sometimes even year-round are: 1) it refines Tener's (1963) estimate of abun¬ (Miller, 1995a, 1997, 1998). dance; 2) it permits more detailed comparisons with subsequent aerial surveys; and 3) it identifies five 1961 Aerial survey eco-units to serve as the best standard for evaluating Macpherson's (1961) summary of wildlife observa¬ future changes in Peary caribou numbers, distribu¬ tions by geologists in the mid- and late 1950s was tions, and movements. Our statistical analyses may available as an internal report in 1960 and provided also satisfy those individuals who place an unfounded some factual information about the numbers and degree of reliance on probability testing and statisti¬ distributions of Peary caribou or other animals on the cal significance instead of evaluating results in terms QEI. However, Tener (1963: 8) believed that those of biological significance (e.g., Yoccoz, 1991; Johnson, surveys were "not detailed enough in their animal 1999; Steidl et al., 2000; Anderson et al., 2001). sightings to be of real value in selecting the method Our objective is to recalculate caribou numbers and of survey." Discussions with P. Larkin (University densities using recently available accurate measures of British Columbia) led Tener to choose system¬ of island size, to place confidence intervals on those atic sampling as the best design for obtaining both estimates using raw data in a bootstrap simulation, distributions and numbers. Although systematic and to provide an ecological basis for the conservation surveying on the Canadian Arctic Archipelago has of Peary caribou on the QEI. become a method used by most biologists for aerial surveys of caribou and muskoxen (Ovibos moschatus), Tener (1963) did not apply any statistical analysis Materials and methods to his 1961 survey results because he and P. Larkin Animals and study area concluded that a useful statistical approach was not The Canadian High Arctic Islands form the northern available at the time. apex of the North American continent and collec¬ The survey transect flights in 1961 employed tively comprise a landmass of 419 061 km2 (Fig. 1). two survey crews, each operating with a Piper The QEI are those islands entirely north of ca. 74°N Super Cub aircraft. The planes were equipped with latitude. Although there are 2126 islands in total, large, low-pressure tires ('tundra tires') to allow only 34 of them each exceed 136 km2 in size and are them to take-off and land on unprepared ground. considered 'large' islands. The 22 islands surveyed When possible, the crews flew the surveys at about in 1961 differ in size from 412 km2 to 196 236 km2 152 m (500 ft) above ground level and 137 km • h-1 and total 410 765 km2 or 98% of the entire QEI. The (85 miles • h-1) air speed. The single observer in each largest is Ellesmere Island, the tenth largest island in plane sat directly behind the pilot and limited his the world. The 12 large islands not surveyed in 1961 observations to the right side of the aircraft. Transect had a collective landmass of 5975 km2. width was about 402 m (0.25 mi). On each island, We divided the QEI into western (WQEI) and the first transect was selected at random and drawn eastern (EQEI) zones (Fig. 1). We further subdi¬ on a survey map; additional transects were then vided the QEI into five island-complexes, which we drawn parallel to it at fixed intervals. termed 'eco-units' (Fig. 1). The two major zones and Aerial coverage varied by island and was small, the five eco-units are based on their relative differ¬ averaging 4% (see Tener, 1963: Table 1). The inter¬ ences in numbers of caribou estimated in 1961, and val between transects was determined by the chosen caribou numbers, distribution, and movements or sampling intensity. Tener (1963) based his survey migrations, as measured between 1961 and 1997 intensity on the belief that using a large number of (e.g., Tener, 1963; Miller et al., 1977a, 1977b; Miller, small samples was better than using only a few large 1990a, 1990b, 1998, 2002; Gunn & Dragon, 2002), ones and that a large number of systematically spaced climate differences (Maxwell, 1981, 1997), and veg- transects probably ensured adequate representation 66 Rangifer, Special Issue No. 16, 2005 maps, as the original data forms no longer exist (J. S. Tener, pers. comm., 2001). During his initial analysis, Tener plotted his observa¬ tions on the maps from the data forms, but after he completed the survey. We compared our raw data tabu¬ lations from those maps to the text, tables and figures in Tener (1963). To reconcile minor discrepancies between data on the maps and Tener (1963), Frank L. Miller and Samuel J. Barry each inde¬ pendently tabulated observa¬ tions of Peary caribou from each data map.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Volume 11, 1958
    CONTENTS Vol. XI, 1958 NO.1 Meetings of the Arctic Circle 1 Officers and Committee members for 19i8 1 Operation Hazen 1957 Z By Piper Cub to the extreme north of Canada 7 The National Film Board Expedition to Eureka, 1956 10 Ornithological research at Pelly Bay in the summer of 1956 11 An electric storm over the north pole 13 Subscriptions for 1958 13 Change of Address 14 Editorial Note 14 NO. Z The Eskimos 15 National Museum expedition to Adelaide Peninsula, 1957 Z4 Geographical Branch survey on Melville Peninsula, 1957 Z7 Inuvik Z9 Arviligjuarmiut names for birds and mammals 30 Change of Address 34 Editorial Note 34 NO.3 Eighty-fifth Meeting 35 Eighty-sixth Meeting 35 The Trail of '98 by the Gravel River Route 35 Road Programme in northern Canada 5Z Department of Transport icebreakers 55 Appointment to the Northwest Territories Council 57 Gazetteer of the Northwest Territories and Yukon 57 "New Aklavik" postmark 57 Subscriptions for 1959 58 - Change of Address 58 • Editorial Note 58 -z­ NO.4 Activities of the Geological Survey of Canada in the Canadian Arctic, 1958 59 Archaeological work in Ungava and Mansel Island 66 Anthropological field work at Great Whale River and Povung­ nituk 68 Geographical Branch survey on Melville Peninsula, 1958 71 "Eskimo Yo-Yo" 74 Change of Address 75 Editorial Note 75 - • THE ARCTIC CIRCLE THE COMMITTEE 1958 Officers President: Dr. D.C. Rose Vice-President: Mr. L.A.C.O. Hunt Secretary: Mr. D. Snowden Publications Secretary: Mr. C.J. Marshall (Mr. J.E. Clelan Treasurer: Miss Mary Murphy Editor: Mrs.
    [Show full text]
  • 023810 Rangifer Spec Issue
    The Ninth North American Caribou Workshop, S7 Kuujjuaq, Québec, Canada, 23-27 April, 2001. Status, population fluctuations and ecological relationships of Peary caribou on the Queen Elizabeth Islands: Implications for their survival Frank L. Miller1 & Anne Gunn2 1 Canadian Wildlife Service, Prairie & Northern Region, Room 200, 4999 - 98th. Avenue, Edmonton, Alberta T6B 2X3 Canada ([email protected]). 2 Department of Resources, Wildlife and Economic Development, Government of the Northwest Territories, Box 1320, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories X1A 3S8 Canada. Abstract: The Peary caribou (Rangifer tarandus pearyi) was recognized as 'Threatened' by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada in 1979 and 'Endangered' in 1991. It is the only member of the deer family (Cervidae) found on the Queen Elizabeth Islands (QEI) of the Canadian High Arctic. The Peary caribou is a significant part of the region's biodiversity and a socially important and economically valuable part of Arctic Canada's natural heritage. Recent microsatellite DNA findings indicate that Peary caribou on the QEI are distinct from caribou on the other Arctic Islands beyond the QEI, including Banks Island. This fact must be kept in mind if any translocation of caribou to the QEI is pro• posed. The subspecies is too gross a level at which to recognize the considerable diversity that exists between Peary cari¬ bou on the QEI and divergent caribou on other Canadian Arctic Islands. The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada should take this considerable diversity among these caribou at below the subspecies classification to mind when assigning conservation divisions (units) to caribou on the Canadian Arctic Islands.
    [Show full text]
  • (Late Tertiary) As Seen from Prince Patrick Island, Arctic Canada’ JOHN G
    ARCTIC WL. 43, NO. 4 (DECEMBER 1990) P. 393-403 Beaufort Formation (Late Tertiary) as Seen from Prince Patrick Island, Arctic Canada’ JOHN G. FYLES’ (Received 20 March 1990; accepted in revked form 14 June 1990) ABSTRACT. The Beaufort Formation, in its typearea on Prince Patrick Island, is a single lithostratigraphicunit, a few tens of metres thick, consisting of unlithified sandy deposits of braided rivers. Organicbeds in the sand have yielded more than 200 species of plants and insects and probably originated during the Pliocene, when the area supported coniferous forest. ThisBeaufort unit forms the thin eastern edge of a northwest-thickeningwedge of sand and gravel beneath the western part of the island. These largely unexposed beds,up to several hundred metres thick, include the Beaufort unit and perhaps other older or younger deposits.On the islands northeast and southwest of PrincePatrick Island (MeighenIsland to Banks Island),the name BeaufortFormation has been appliedto similar deposits of late Rrtiary age. Most recorded Beaufort beds on these islands are stratigraphically and paleontologically equivalentto the “type” Beaufort, but a few sites that have been called Beaufort (suchas Duck Hawk Bluffsand the lower unit at Ballast Brook,on Banks Island) differ stratigraphicallyand paleontologically from the “type” Beaufort. This paper recommends that these deposits (probably middle Miocene) and others like them be assigned new stratigraphic names and not be included in the Beaufort Formation as now defined. Informal names Mary Sachs gravel (Duck HawkBluffs) and Ballast Brookbeds are proposed as an initial step. Formal use of the name Beaufort Formation shouldrestricted be to the western Arctic Islands.
    [Show full text]
  • Hot Rocks from Cold Places: a Field, Geochemical and Geochronological Study from the High Arctic Large Igneous P Rovince (HALIP) at Axel Heiberg Island, Nunavut
    ! !"#$%"&'($)*"+$,"-.$/-0&1(2$3$451-.6$71"&81+5&0-$09.$ 71"&8*"9"-":5&0-$;#<.=$)*"+$#81$!5:8$3*&#5&$>0*:1$ ?:91"<($/*"@59&1$A!3>?/B$0#$3C1-$!15D1*:$?(-09.6$ E<90@<#$ $ $ by Cole Girard Kingsbury A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Affairs in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Earth Sciences Ottawa – Carleton Geoscience Centre and Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario © 2016 Cole Girard Kingsbury ! ! !"#$%&'$() ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) The geology of the Arctic is greatly influenced by a period of widespread Cretaceous magmatic activity, the High Arctic Large Igneous Province (HALIP). Two major tholeiitic magmatic pulses characterize HALIP: an initial 120 -130 Ma pulse that affected Arctic Canada and formally adjacent regions of Svalbard (Norway) and Franz Josef Land (Russia). In Canada, this pulse fed lava flows of the Isachsen Formation. A second 90-100 Ma pulse that apparently only affected the Canadian side of the Arctic, fed flood basalts of the Strand Fiord Formation. The goal of this thesis is to improve understanding of Arctic magmatism of the enigmatic HALIP through field, remote sensing, geochemical and geochronology investigations of mafic intrusive rocks collected in the South Fiord area of Axel Heiberg Island, Nunavut, and comparison with mafic lavas of the Isachsen and Strand Fiord Formations collected from other localities on the Island. Ground-based and remote sensing observations of the South Fiord area reveal a complex network of mafic sills and mainly SSE-trending dykes. Two new U-Pb baddeleyite ages of 95.18 ± 0.35 Ma and 95.56 ± 0.24 Ma from South Fiord intrusions along with geochemical similarity confirm these intrusions (including the SSE-trending dykes) are feeders for the Strand Fiord Formation lavas.
    [Show full text]
  • A Historical and Legal Study of Sovereignty in the Canadian North : Terrestrial Sovereignty, 1870–1939
    University of Calgary PRISM: University of Calgary's Digital Repository University of Calgary Press University of Calgary Press Open Access Books 2014 A historical and legal study of sovereignty in the Canadian north : terrestrial sovereignty, 1870–1939 Smith, Gordon W. University of Calgary Press "A historical and legal study of sovereignty in the Canadian north : terrestrial sovereignty, 1870–1939", Gordon W. Smith; edited by P. Whitney Lackenbauer. University of Calgary Press, Calgary, Alberta, 2014 http://hdl.handle.net/1880/50251 book http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives 4.0 International Downloaded from PRISM: https://prism.ucalgary.ca A HISTORICAL AND LEGAL STUDY OF SOVEREIGNTY IN THE CANADIAN NORTH: TERRESTRIAL SOVEREIGNTY, 1870–1939 By Gordon W. Smith, Edited by P. Whitney Lackenbauer ISBN 978-1-55238-774-0 THIS BOOK IS AN OPEN ACCESS E-BOOK. It is an electronic version of a book that can be purchased in physical form through any bookseller or on-line retailer, or from our distributors. Please support this open access publication by requesting that your university purchase a print copy of this book, or by purchasing a copy yourself. If you have any questions, please contact us at ucpress@ ucalgary.ca Cover Art: The artwork on the cover of this book is not open access and falls under traditional copyright provisions; it cannot be reproduced in any way without written permission of the artists and their agents. The cover can be displayed as a complete cover image for the purposes of publicizing this work, but the artwork cannot be extracted from the context of the cover of this specificwork without breaching the artist’s copyright.
    [Show full text]
  • Frederick J. Krabbé, Last Man to See HMS Investigator Afloat, May 1854
    The Journal of the Hakluyt Society January 2017 Frederick J. Krabbé, last man to see HMS Investigator afloat, May 1854 William Barr1 and Glenn M. Stein2 Abstract Having ‘served his apprenticeship’ as Second Master on board HMS Assistance during Captain Horatio Austin’s expedition in search of the missing Franklin expedition in 1850–51, whereby he had made two quite impressive sledge trips, in the spring of 1852 Frederick John Krabbé was selected by Captain Leopold McClintock to serve under him as Master (navigation officer) on board the steam tender HMS Intrepid, part of Captain Sir Edward Belcher’s squadron, again searching for the Franklin expedition. After two winterings, the second off Cape Cockburn, southwest Bathurst Island, Krabbé was chosen by Captain Henry Kellett to lead a sledging party west to Mercy Bay, Banks Island, to check on the condition of HMS Investigator, abandoned by Commander Robert M’Clure, his officers and men, in the previous spring. Krabbé executed these orders and was thus the last person to see Investigator afloat. Since, following Belcher’s orders, Kellett had abandoned HMS Resolute and Intrepid, rather than their return journey ending near Cape Cockburn, Krabbé and his men had to continue for a further 140 nautical miles (260 km) to Beechey Island. This made the total length of their sledge trip 863½ nautical miles (1589 km), one of the longest man- hauled sledge trips in the history of the Arctic. Introduction On 22 July 2010 a party from the underwater archaeology division of Parks Canada flew into Mercy Bay in Aulavik National Park, on Banks Island, Northwest Territories – its mission to try to locate HMS Investigator, abandoned here by Commander Robert McClure in 1853.3 Two days later underwater archaeologists Ryan Harris and Jonathan Moore took to the water in a Zodiac to search the bay, towing a side-scan sonar towfish.
    [Show full text]
  • Volume 12, 1959
    THE ARCT IC CIRCLE THE COMMITTEE 1959 Officers President: Dr. D.C. Rose Vice -Presidents Mr. L.A.C.O. Hunt Secretary: Mr. D. Snowden Treasurer: Mr. J .E. Cleland Publications Secretary: Miss Mary Murphy Editor: Mrs .G.W. Rowley Members Mr. Harvey Blandford Mr. Welland Phipps Mr. J. Cantley Mr. A. Stevenson Mr. F..A. Cate Mr. Fraser Symington L/Cdr. J.P. Croal, R.C.N. Mr. J .5. Tener Miss Moira Dunbar Dr. R. Thorsteinsson W IC K. R. Greenaway, R.C.A.F. Dr. J.S. Willis Mr. T .H. Manning Mr. J. Wyatt Mr. Elijah Menarik CONTENTS VOLUME XlI, 1959 NO.1 Meetings of the Arctic Circle 1 Officers and Committee Members for 1959 Z Research in the Lake Hazen region of northern Ellesmere Island in the International Geophysical Year Z Anthropological work in the Eastern Arctic, 1958 13 Geomorphological studies on Southampton Island, 1958 15 Bird Sanctuaries in Southampton Island 17 Subscriptions for 1959 18 Change of Address 18 Editorial Note 18 NO. Z U.S. Navy airship flight to Ice Island T3 19 Firth River archaeological activities. 1956 and 1958 Z6 A light floatplane operation in the far northern islands, 1958 Z9 Change of Address 31 Editorial Note 31 NO.3 Meetings of the Arctic Circle 3Z The Polar Continental Shelf Project, 1959 3Z Jacobsen-McGill Arctic Research Expedition to Axel Heiberg Island 38 Biological work on Prince of Wales Island in the summer of 1958 40 Geographical Branch Survey in southern Melville Peninsula, 1959 43 Pilot of Arctic Canada 48 Subsc riptions for 1960 50 Change of Address 51 • Editorial Note 51 I NO.4 Meetings of the Arctic Circle 52 Officers and Committee Members for 1960 52 Some factors regarding northern oil and gas 53 Nauyopee.
    [Show full text]
  • Wolf-Sightings on the Canadian Arctic Islands FRANK L
    ARCTIC VOL. 48, NO.4 (DECEMBER 1995) P. 313–323 Wolf-Sightings on the Canadian Arctic Islands FRANK L. MILLER1 and FRANCES D. REINTJES1 (Received 6 April 1994; accepted in revised form 13 March 1995) ABSTRACT. A wolf-sighting questionnaire was sent to 201 arctic field researchers from many disciplines to solicit information on observations of wolves (Canis lupus spp.) made by field parties on Canadian Arctic Islands. Useable responses were obtained for 24 of the 25 years between 1967 and 1991. Respondents reported 373 observations, involving 1203 wolf-sightings. Of these, 688 wolves in 234 observations were judged to be different individuals; the remaining 515 wolf-sightings in 139 observations were believed to be repeated observations of 167 of those 688 wolves. The reported wolf-sightings were obtained from 1953 field-weeks spent on 18 of 36 Arctic Islands reported on: no wolves were seen on the other 18 islands during an additional 186 field-weeks. Airborne observers made 24% of all wolf-sightings, 266 wolves in 48 packs and 28 single wolves. Respondents reported seeing 572 different wolves in 118 separate packs and 116 single wolves. Pack sizes averaged 4.8 ± 0.28 SE and ranged from 2 to 15 wolves. Sixty-three wolf pups were seen in 16 packs, with a mean of 3.9 ± 2.24 SD and a range of 1–10 pups per pack. Most (81%) of the different wolves were seen on the Queen Elizabeth Islands. Respondents annually averaged 10.9 observations of wolves ·100 field-weeks-1 and saw on average 32.2 wolves·100 field-weeks-1· yr -1 between 1967 and 1991.
    [Show full text]
  • Who Discovered the Northwest Passage? Janice Cavell1
    ARCTIC VOL. 71, NO.3 (SEPTEMBER 2018) P.292 – 308 https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic4733 Who Discovered the Northwest Passage? Janice Cavell1 (Received 31 January 2018; accepted in revised form 1 May 2018) ABSTRACT. In 1855 a parliamentary committee concluded that Robert McClure deserved to be rewarded as the discoverer of a Northwest Passage. Since then, various writers have put forward rival claims on behalf of Sir John Franklin, John Rae, and Roald Amundsen. This article examines the process of 19th-century European exploration in the Arctic Archipelago, the definition of discovering a passage that prevailed at the time, and the arguments for and against the various contenders. It concludes that while no one explorer was “the” discoverer, McClure’s achievement deserves reconsideration. Key words: Northwest Passage; John Franklin; Robert McClure; John Rae; Roald Amundsen RÉSUMÉ. En 1855, un comité parlementaire a conclu que Robert McClure méritait de recevoir le titre de découvreur d’un passage du Nord-Ouest. Depuis lors, diverses personnes ont avancé des prétentions rivales à l’endroit de Sir John Franklin, de John Rae et de Roald Amundsen. Cet article se penche sur l’exploration européenne de l’archipel Arctique au XIXe siècle, sur la définition de la découverte d’un passage en vigueur à l’époque, de même que sur les arguments pour et contre les divers prétendants au titre. Nous concluons en affirmant que même si aucun des explorateurs n’a été « le » découvreur, les réalisations de Robert McClure méritent d’être considérées de nouveau. Mots clés : passage du Nord-Ouest; John Franklin; Robert McClure; John Rae; Roald Amundsen Traduit pour la revue Arctic par Nicole Giguère.
    [Show full text]
  • Queen Elizabeth Islands: Problems Associated with Water Balance Research
    Northern Research Basins Water Balance (Proceedings of a workshop held at Victoria, Canada, March 2004). IAHS Publ. 290, 2004 Queen Elizabeth Islands: problems associated with water balance research KATHY L. YOUNG1 & MING-KO WOO2 1 Geography Department, York University, 4700 Keele Street, Toronto, Ontario, M3JIP3, Canada klyoung(S>.vorku.ca 2 School of Geography and Geology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, L8S 4K1, Canada Abstract The Queen Elizabeth Islands in Arctic Canada are in an extremely remote region with long, cold winters, and 2- to 3-month summers, with 24-h daylight. Snow is a major part of annual precipitation, but there are few Arctic weather stations and precipitation data accuracy is hampered by gauge undercatch. Large spatial variations in snowmelt and evaporation make it difficult to extend point calculations over a basin. Currently no official hydrometric station exists in the Islands and the short-term available records are afflicted by stream gauging problems during peak flows. Annual water balances are often not closed, as not all the components are measured or calculated; this applies to early studies and to all glacierized catchments. Given the sensitivity of polar regions to climatic change and the likely importance of freshwater input to the Arctic Ocean, performing proper water balances for the basins in the Arctic Archipelago is a challenge. Key words Canadian Arctic; evaporation; permafrost; precipitation; Queen Elizabeth Islands; runoff; storage; water balance INTRODUCTION In the early 1970s, interest in Arctic hydrological research was largely stimulated by the planning of megaprojects in the Canadian Arctic Islands, such as the opening of mines and the designing of gas pipelines.
    [Show full text]
  • Final Complete Dissertation Kua 1
    Trends and Ontology of Artistic Practices of the Dorset Culture 800 BC - 1300 AD Hardenberg, Mari Publication date: 2013 Document version Early version, also known as pre-print Citation for published version (APA): Hardenberg, M. (2013). Trends and Ontology of Artistic Practices of the Dorset Culture 800 BC - 1300 AD. København: Det Humanistiske Fakultet, Københavns Universitet. Download date: 08. Apr. 2020 Trends and Ontology of Artistic Practices of the Dorset Culture 800 BC – 1300 AD Volume 1 By © Mari Hardenberg A Dissertation Submitted to the Ph.d.- School In Partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy SAXO-Institute, Department of Prehistoric Archaeology, Faculty of Humanities University of Copenhagen August 2013 Copenhagen Denmark ABSTRACT This dissertation examines the various artistic carvings produced by the hunter-gatherer Dorset people who occupied the eastern Arctic and temperate regions of Canada and Greenland between circa BC 800 – AD 1300. It includes considerations on how the carved objects affected and played a role in Dorset social life. To consider the role of people, things and other beings that may be said to play as actors in interdependent entanglements of actions, the agency/actor- network theory is employed. From this theoretical review an interpretation of social life as created by the ways people interact with the material world is presented. This framework is employed as a lens into the social role and meaning the carvings played in the Dorset society. The examined assemblages were recovered from a series of Dorset settlement sites, mainly in house, midden, and burial contexts, providing a substantive case study through which variations and themes of carvings are studied.
    [Show full text]
  • Traditional Knowledge About Polar Bears (Ursus Maritimus) in Northwestern Alaska HANNAH VOORHEES,1 RHONDA SPARKS, 2 HENRY P
    ARCTIC VOL. 67, NO. 4 (DECEMBER 2014) P. 523 – 536 http://dx.doi.org/10.14430/arctic4425 Traditional Knowledge about Polar Bears (Ursus maritimus) in Northwestern Alaska HANNAH VOORHEES,1 RHONDA SPARKS, 2 HENRY P. HUNTINGTON3 and KARYN D. RODE4 (Received 3 July 2013; accepted in revised form 4 April 2014) ABSTRACT. Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are an iconic Arctic species, but residents of Arctic coastal communities are among the few who have opportunities to observe their behavior for extended periods of time. Documenting traditional knowledge about polar bears is thus an important research approach, especially in light of recent rapid changes to summer sea ice extent. We interviewed polar bear hunters in seven Alaska Native communities along the coast of the northern Bering Sea and Chukchi Sea. Our study confirmed findings from similar research conducted in the mid-1990s and added information about the responses of polar bears to more recent environmental change. The distribution and local abundance of polar bears have changed over time, though different communities report different patterns. Polar bears arrive from the north later in fall than previously. Despite substantial changes in sea ice and other aspects of polar bear habitat, the animals generally appear to be in good body condition, and cubs continue to be observed regularly. While polar bears continue to feed primarily on seals, they have been observed eating a diverse range of foods, including eggs, greens, fish, berries, and other foods as available. Reduction in harvest levels due to environmental, economic, and social factors is the overriding trend; however, in years when bears are particularly abundant around villages, this pattern is temporarily reversed.
    [Show full text]